Infinitely Losing My Edge
Yeah, I'm losing my edge.
I'm losing my edge.
The kids are coming up from behind.
I'm losing my edge.
I'm losing my edge to the kids from El Salvador and from Manchester.
But I was there.
I was there in 1979.
I was there at the first Second Layer show in South London.
I'm losing my edge.
I'm losing my edge to the kids whose footsteps I hear when they get on the decks.
I'm losing my edge to the internet seekers who can tell me every member of every good group from 1962 to 1975.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Bologna and Accra.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school London kids in little jackets and borrowed nostalgia for the unremembered nineties.
I'm losing my edge.
I'm losing my edge.
I can hear the footsteps every night on the decks.
But I was there.
I was there in 1970 at the first Onyeabor practice in a loft in Enugu.
I was working on the 808 sounds with much patience.
I was there when Donald Fagen started up his first band.
I told him, "Don't do it that way. You'll never make a dime."
I was there.
I was the first guy playing Scan 7 to the funk kids.
I played it at the 40 Watt.
Everybody thought I was crazy.
We all know.
I was there.
I was there.
I've never been wrong.
But I'm losing my edge to better-looking people with better ideas and more talent.
And they're actually really, really nice.
I'm losing my edge.
I heard you have a compilation of every good song ever done by anybody.
Every great song by Bootsy's Rubber Band. All the underground hits.
All Rotary Connection tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Slick Rick record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal rock hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '50s cut and another box set from the '70s.
I hear you're buying an oboe and a spring reverb and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Bad Manners record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your arpeggiator and bought a synthesizer.
I hear that you and your band have sold your synthesizer and bought an arpeggiator.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
David Bowie,
Glenn Branca,
Saccharine Trust,
Electric Light Orchestra,
Bobby Hutcherson,
Gerry Rafferty,
Ronnie Foster,
Ituana,
The Human League,
Talk Talk,
Terror Squad Feat. Camron,
Arcadia,
Ralphi Rosario,
D'Angelo,
Radio Birdman,
Niagra,
Red Lorry Yellow Lorry,
Lee Hazlewood,
The Shadows of Knight,
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark,
Ash Ra Tempel,
Slave,
Crispy Ambulance,
Traffic Nightmare,
Amon Düül II,
London Community Gospel Choir,
Ultimate Spinach,
Avey Tare,
CMW,
The Cure,
Aswad,
Livin' Joy,
Mo-Dettes,
Sam Rivers,
Terry Callier,
Bobbi Humphrey,
Mission of Burma,
X-101,
The Divine Comedy,
Country Teasers,
The Litter,
Bizarre Inc.,
The Knickerbockers,
Sugar Minott,
KRS-One,
Fela Kuti,
Monolake,
The Mighty Diamonds,
The Fall,
Anthony Braxton,
Minor Threat,
Faust,
Rod Modell,
Black Moon,
New York Dolls,
Charles Mingus,
Rekid,
Judy Mowatt,
DJ Style,
Chrome, Chrome, Chrome, Chrome.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.